Mortis Raptor
The Mortis Raptor is another variantion of the Drone Construct. Raptors are rather identical to their drone counterparts, except that they have large bat- or terradactyl-like winged limbs growing from their sides, above and slightly behind their forward most limbs. Flight Mechanism One would not expect such a creature to be capable of flight. And in fact, their large wings are intended for gliding more than anything. They also have webbing identical in construction to their wings that grows out from behind their second limbs back to the shoulders of the next set, and long fin-like webs running from the third back along the sides of approximately half their tails. These act as what are essentially control surfaces for conventional mechanical aircraft. Furthermore, the Raptor possesses a second plasma organ housed in its femur which projects out from an opening in the lower abdomen / rectum area, where a female animal's genitals might be (although Mortis Constructs themselves do not, in fact, have any genitalia). This is not an offensive weapon, but a sort of rocket booster. Sustained bursts of plasma and gasses are emitted from this oriphace to provide exceleration and keep the Raptor in flight, and allows the beast to hover by continuous burning. How long this booster may "burn" in this manner before the supply of biological fuel is exhausted is unknown, although it is possible that the organ may be used indefinitely, as the Raptor's bodily passively refills the fuel blatter through biological processes at a very rapid rate. Offensive Abilities Raptors' primary means of engaging enemy aircraft is to physically lock onto them and claw / bludgeon them. They appear to possess a fairly extensive knowledge of the vulnerable points of most Directorate aircraft, probably the accumulated knowledge gained through their latent psychic network connections (as all Mortis possess the memories of every other Mortis, living and dead, stored passively in their brains). More often than not, Directorate aircraft are simply pulled out of the air by the weight of dozens of Raptors clinging to them. However, Raptors also possess a modified plasma organ, similar to that of the Shrieker but taking the form of a smaller sack located in the bases of their throats (in roughly the same location as found on the Drone). Thus, they may project large numbers of plasma bolts at a rapid rate, although they do not appear any different in composition from those of a regular Drone. This organ is also a weakness - a well-placed Directorate rifle round which hits this sack will cause the contents to ignite, effectively blowing the Raptor to pieces. Limitations Mortis Raptors are quite heavy for their size, since their bodies are only those of a Drone with some additional modifications. As such, they are not capable of taking off from the ground under their own power. Traditionally, they hang like bats from larger already airborne Mortis creatures and warships, dropping off into the air; however they can also dive off of ledges at a sprint or drop from a perch, provided it is high enough. Additionally, they are individually no match for a conventional aircraft, being much slower and quite easy to kill, relatively speaking, and as such rely entirely on weight of numbers. The bolts of plasma from their mouths, although utterly deadly to unprotected humans and quite dangerous to armored Directorate infantry, are almost useless against a vehicle or aircraft's energy screens, and have a fairly weak armor-penetration ability.